Artemis Fowl: The Agamemnon Stone
by Akido
Summary: Following on from Artemis Fowl: New Beginning, the LEP finds itself in debt to Artemis as he and Butler save Holly from the escapees of Howler's Peak
1. Headline News

Chapter One: Headline News  
  
~LEP Headquarters, Haven City~  
  
'The latest reports from the surface indicate that the entire city of Haven is surrounded by a huge time-stop field, the Warlocks in conjunction with this field are ex-members of the League of Warlocks and are the subject of an LEP search as I speak. Confusion ripped through the city today as the power leading to Howler's Peak Prison was cut. Police say there is no need to worry and the escaped criminals will be taken into custody again soon. In related news, the LEP test subject and the first female LEPrecon agent, Holly Short, is the subject of a criminal manhunt today. The goblins that escaped from Howlers peak, known members of the B'wa Kell, are hunting down the LEP officer in a crazy and wild frenzy. The city is being torn apart in the search for Short. Public opinion is that Short should be turned over, this is backed my LEP Commander Root.'  
  
'D'Arvit!' Swore Commander Root, 'I said no such rubbish!' he bellowed, clouds of Fungus smoke obscured the vision of all the occupants of the room. Artemis Fowl, Butler, Foaly, Captain Trouble Kelp and Root sat around the Captain's table. Artemis was closest to Root and was soon coughing as the thick fungus smoke scraped his lungs. Butler was next to speak, past the fumes of the cigar and the fuming Root. 'What's our plan of action? Obviously we need to save Holly,' Butler said, his eyes beginning to water, 'and we need to capture the escaped goblins, again.' The table nodded in agreement. 'Any ideas Kelp?' Root said after a long drag on the cigar, extinguishing it on the desk, 'Where are the other Captains?' 'Well, Uhh. Sir.' Kelp babbled, 'the other Captains are all out trying to capture escapees.' Butler looked round to Foaly who was scanning the city. 'They haven't made a move on LEP HQ, Julius.' Foaly said, his fingers moving swiftly over several keypads. 'They're looking for Holly, we're looking for the Warlocks and the LEP are searching for escaped prisoners. the only people we have to save Holly are.' Root stopped, Artemis sat gloating, Root had to ask him another favour. 'Us,' interrupted the teenager, his eyes flashed with excitement, 'we are the only free people that can save Holly. this is absolutely delicious.' Artemis was beaming; a chance to embarrass Root, win back Holly and go on another adventure was rising ahead of him. 'Alright, Fowl, suit up, and you Butler.' he said as Butler shuddered. The LEPrecon suits said, "One size fits all" not "one size fits Butler." The last time Butler had to wear LEP outfits was embarrassing; skin-tight did not suit the seven-foot manservant. Artemis nodded and stood. Butler rose next to him and they were ushered into an equipment room. 'Kelp, I want you back on the streets.' Root sighed, 'Keep our men informed, supported and armed. I don't want a repeat of last time.' The memories of which Root spoke referred to the last B'wa Kell uprising. Led by the tactless ex-Commander Cudgeon and the brilliant Opal Koboi, the LEP had been completely disarmed thanks to the fact that Opal had produced every one of the LEP weapons. The goblins were also supplied with their own new weapons, the outlawed 'Softnose' laser which used revolutionary bio molecular technology which led to the weapon being deemed illegal in Haven. This combination of disarmed Police forces and well armed terrorist factions led to the assault on the LEP Headquarters; the whole building was being swarmed with angry Goblins until Artemis and Butler restored power. Power meant weapons, weapons meant DNA Cannons. Many goblins regretted that night, some however, lived for their revenge. 'Sir, yes sir' Kelp replied and ran off to support his fellow troops, especially his brother, Grub. Root turned round and looked deep eyed at Foaly. 'What have you got for me, genius?' he asked (there was a muffled whooshing noise as the sarcasm sailed over Foaly's head). 'Get this, Julius, portable, yes, PORTABLE, DNA Cannons. well, DNA pistols really.' he said, showing the design to Root, who looked wide-eyed at the screen. 'Though the screen says nothing to me, your words excite me, horse boy,' he grinned, 'portable you say?' Root asked, Foaly smiled. 'They can go into production now and we can have a hundred out within the hour' Foaly said, his finger hovering over the 'return' button, Root nodded and Foaly pressed.  
  
~Entrance to LEP Headquarters~  
  
The duo looked oddly heroic, like two super heroes in Lycra. Artemis, with his LEP helmet, gloves, boots and toolkit. Butler, his Lycra suit stretched to the edge of elastic tolerance, his normal boots (it was hard to get size 14H boots underground where the average adult size is Elf) and a wraparound HUD which at least helped Butler scan further distances. Artemis looked up at butler, grinned under his helmet and said in a 1960's accent: 'Golly, Batman, what's the big plan?' Butler looked down at Artemis and could hardly contain his stifled laugh, that was the first time Artemis had told a laugh-out-loud joke. Artemis was proud of himself, he and Butler were now friends more than employer-employee. 'Butler, are you going to be alright? I'm sure that new Kevlar chest hair of yours will hamper your efforts on this mission.' Artemis asked, Butler looked away to survey the unnaturally light streets. 'Yes, I may be slightly impaired but the only alternative is you going alone and well. no offence. but you cant do this alone' butler said, turning to smile down at Artemis. Artemis silently agreed. There was a time for jokes, friendship and familiarity and there was now.  
  
~Disused Koboi Laboratories, Haven City~  
  
Where else to plot a revenge act? The site of the last uprising. A group of Goblins surrounded their new leader, looking down at him cautiously. 'So, right, what're we gunna do when we get this. Short?' a particularly dumb Goblin said, this question was followed by a rather dumb sounding echo of grunts from the others. Their leader sat in a slump on an old hoverchair, bored by the dumb ramblings of his troops. 'Gentlemen, gentlemen, we are going to kill her, of course!' said the new leader, a rather loud and strong voice. The new man stood, towering over his companions, his bright green eyes shining in the dark. The goblins around him took a few steps back as their boss stretched.  
  
You couldn't really see in the dark but the Elf that stood there had a dark, almost black complexion, his eyes were like green fire which bore through those who dared to look into his eyes. The muscles on his forearms rippled as he moved and the armour which covered his legs and chest were ancient.  
  
'Kill 'er Dyxs?' asked the Goblin, snorting loudly in the air, 'Why? We kud get munny for 'er!'  
  
The Elf looked down at the Goblin, his eyes ran over the creature's frame. 'That's an idea, Kruch, but not a good one, why would you need money?' Dyxs growled and punched the goblin who fell silently to the floor, 'I need to kill her as she threatens my legacy and your freedom.'  
  
The goblins never quite knew when they were being manipulated but when such a prominent power like Agamemnon Dyxs goes to all the trouble of breaking you free, you don't say no. 


	2. Effects

Chapter Two: Effects  
  
~LEP Plaza, Haven City~  
  
Time Stops are okay. On a small scale they can aid the LEP capture or debilitate a fugitive. On the other hand, a huge twenty-five cubic mile of hazy blue time-stop quickly made some people ill and others just uncoordinated.  
You see, some people don't like Time Stops, some people get sick in them, some people are even terrified of them, people like Foaly. Once everyone had left the conference room in the LEP Plaza, he hurried back to his office and slammed the door. 'What am I going to do?' Foaly thought, 'I need to get out but I can't.' Foaly looked up on his notice board and saw his motto in big red letters: WHEN IN DOUBT, INVENT YOUR WAY OUT Foaly brought the specifications of the Time-Stop up on his screen, if he could create a reverse effect to a time stop in a localised area, he could coon himself and wait for the time stop to subside. In theory, perfect, in practise, who knows?  
  
~Somewhere In Haven City~  
  
Artemis wasn't entirely enjoying the hunt for Holly, though he was starting to. His aim with the Neutrino 2000 was slowly improving, Butler kept giving him tips and pointers on the proper way to hold and fire a weapon; this was something he'd never even dreamt of doing. Artemis was thrilled with the power that was in his hands; whenever a gang of goblins stirred he was first out of their LEP vehicle and first to be squeezing off shots at the gang. Butler was highly impressed with Artemis as he dived and rolled to avoid fireballs, soon butler didn't even have to get out of the car. 'This is quite fun!' Artemis said as he leapt up onto the vehicle and fire off several shots at one Goblin who keeled over backwards. Butler picked up a communicator and called the neared LEP squad who said they would arrive in a few minutes to pick up the goblins. 'How many is that now, Butler? Artemis asked as he closed the door, shuffling in his seat to get comfortable. 'Around forty, Artemis,' Butler smiled, 'for you, that's it, I'm still on twelve.' Butler sounded mockingly sad as Artemis grinned. 'You ARE getting slow, old friend.' 'I'm just fine watching you have fun for once.' Butler responded. Artemis, having fun. This was a first, he thought, how long would it last? There was no time to finish the thought when two fireballs hit the side of the car; once again Artemis was first out of the car and first to face at least twenty Goblins. 'Uhh...I might need help with this one Butler.' he said, Butler stood up slowly to face the Goblins. Artemis smiled and raised his weapon, 'Come on guys, we're all friends here, lets just settle this peacefully.' he said, the Goblins looked puzzled. Artemis was using words that weren't monosyllable; they looked at each other with wide eyes. All of the had two fireballs blazing in each hand, that was at least forty fireballs.  
  
It didn't take a genius to do the math on this one.  
  
As Artemis and Butler ducked for cover, an LEP Police Wagon flew past, its rapid-fire Neutrino Cannon picking off most of the Goblins as it went by. Artemis could see it coming back for another pass, he also saw the Goblins scampering away. He fired a few rounds but didn't make any special effort to subdue the fleeing fugitives; Butler stood next to him and sighed. 'Out search for Holly isn't going as well s we'd planned, Artemis. we need to look harder and faster than these troglodytes.' Butler said, getting into a car. 'Butler, it isn't hard to look for Holly better than these Goblins. I expect their race's collective IQ doesn't raise above room temperature,' another joke, Butler laughed, Artemis smiled, 'Come on, I think I have an idea.' They made they way through empty streets, (the general public had fled to their homes during the new goblin threat) and towards the tunnel entrances. Holly had gone through these tunnels before, her search for B'wa Kell Goblins with Softnoses had familiarised her with these derelict, troll- ridden caves. Butler took their vehicle in as far as it would go and when it was stuck in sufficient mud as to immobilise it completely, Artemis got out, drew his Neutrino and started walking into the cave. Thermal scans from Artemis' helmet told him there were few beings in his immediate area, apart from a few dwarves and a rambling troll he and Butler were alone. Butler walked past him, suspending a luminous torch above their heads, the cold red clay ground squelched under their feet. 'I have a feeling she's down here, she doesn't have much LEP equipment but hopefully she has her helmet and Neutrino.' Artemis whispered, walking past a Dwarf who was busy taking slivers of gold from his mouth. 'Disgusting.' Artemis said slipping past the Dwarf who grunted in his general direction. Butler was walking silently, his eyes manipulating the HUD in front of him. 'She's here, Artemis, I have her DNA pattern on the scanner but she's far away and.' Butler paused, thinking for a moment. 'What?' Artemis asked 'Nothing, lets get moving.' 'Tell me, butler, don't keep secrets from me.' 'She's hurt, weak lifesigns.' This hit Artemis like a brick or two, he looked around then broke off at a run. Butler jogged beside him, Artemis felt mocked that he was sprinting and Butler was only running slowly. 'Artemis, even at a run we wont get there within a few hours, she's deep in the tunnels.' Artemis wasn't listening, though he did stop running. He knew he couldn't run forever so he'd conserve his energy. Butler patted him on the shoulder. 'She has magic, Artemis, she can look after herself.' Artemis knew this; he just had a very strong urge to be at her side. He couldn't walk happily through these muddy caves whilst Holly lay somewhere bleeding to death or something. The fact she was an elf and that her whole body was teeming with magic didn't occur to him.  
  
~LEP Plaza, Haven City~  
  
Root sat behind his desk, staring at Anthony. Words couldn't express the anger he felt for bringing this whole thing to happen. Anthony couldn't bring himself to look at Root at all; he eyes fell on the Neutrino 2000 that was on Root's desk, dangerously close to his hand. 'Short, we need to talk about your position in the LEP,' Root said, his calm tone of voice was scary, 'Lets just say, when this is over, you wont be directing any more recon missions, rather, traffic' Anthony winced, traffic duty. that's worse than being kicked out of the LEP completely. He was the border-age for joining the LEP, and younger and he wouldn't have been accepted in the first place. He was two inches taller than Holly, which made him, luckily, above average. 'Now, you get out there and you help your fellow LEP officers stop these raving mad Goblins.' Root opened his drawer and took out a fungus cigar. Claws left before he could light up.  
  
Meanwhile, Foaly was sweating profusely. His design was perfect but the pieces he needed to finish the egg were missing, he only needed one more piece and Root had it. 


	3. Tidal Wave

Chapter Three: Tidal Wave  
  
~Tunnels Below The City Of Haven~  
  
Holly's story was somewhat different. From the moment she heard about the breakout, she had put on her equipment and rushed out the door to help the LEP. She was with Grub Kelp when the Goblins had started aiming directly for her. Grub was cowering under a bridge, complaining that the Neutrino 2000 was too heavy. Holly watches as hordes of Goblins followed her wherever she went. She borrowed a pair of new wings from a nearby LEP wagon and flew away to safety. Holly was not very happy. Sure she had aided in the capture of every B'wa Kell Goblin there was but they couldn't blame her; she was just an LEP Elf doing her job! She had escaped into the tunnels just in time as a few Goblins chased her. She flew quickly into the nearest opening and opened the throttle on her wing pack as far as it would go. She accelerated into the caves to buy herself some time to come up with the plan. She dodges cave wall and negated turns with her perfect skill and noticed the cave walls slowly turning darker and darker in colour. She set down gently on the ground and looked around, her helmet scanning every miniscule thing. Her helmet picked up a large body of heat close by; she turned to investigate it when a huge, thick, muscled hand came down on her. Apparently the female troll didn't like being woken up by flying elves and thought it would be funny to attack Holly, Holly didn't find it as funny.  
Holly hit the floor and bounced for a few feet. She slowly stood up and rounded on the troll who was limpidly running towards her, she drew her Neutrino and let off a couple of full-power blasts, each one slowing the troll down a tiny bit. Holly turned to run when another, this time male, Troll came bounding up the tunnel. An LEP agent wasn't meant to deal with this, she sighed and her wings burst into life, lifting her quickly into the air away from the oncoming assailants. A burst of high-powered energy sailed through the air and hit Holly in the back of the head; A Warlock stood tall in the shadows of the cave, his long white beard shimmering in the darkness. The Trolls backed away as Holly lost consciousness.  
  
Agamemnon grinned; taking down today's high-tech elf was child's play. He felt good, he was in control of Hordes of Goblins, packs of Trolls and the LEP couldn't stop him as long as the Time-Stop was in place. The only thing he had to fear was the two mud-men who were making their way slowly through his tunnels. He beckoned to the two trolls who obligingly walked towards him, their feet thumping on the floor. 'You two, there are two mud men coming this way, they want to attack your children I bet.' Agamemnon said, the Trolls looked at each other and growled. The male ran off down then tunnel and the female walked after him.  
  
~LEP Plaza, Haven City~  
  
Foaly entered Root's office after several knocks on the door. 'What is it, Foaly?' Root asked, Root's computer screen clearly on an Internet site ordering some new cigars. 'I need to borrow your.uhh.. I need a part from your. uhh. weapon' Foaly said, he smiled weakly, Root looked at him blankly. 'You want to borrow the D.L?' Root asked, his lip curling, 'Why?' 'Yeah. umm. I need a part from it. I swear I'll give it back to you in a few hours, tops.' Foaly needed the diamond filament from the Diamond Laser Root had used during his years in the LEP. This weapon had served him for over fifty years and Root wasn't going to let Foaly tinker with it. 'How about 'No' Foaly? You know what that thing means to me.' Root snarled, clearly uninterested by Foaly's pleas. 'C'mon Julius, its for a new invention, something to save us from the Time Stop!' Foaly cried, Root taking particular interest in this development. 'You promise I'll get it back in full working order?' Root asked, handling the old weapon with interest, 'Yes, yes, but I really do need it.' Foaly said, reaching out for the gun. Root relinquished the gun sadly and turned away. Foaly hurried away, pulling the gun part as he went, holding the casing firmly and ripping the long sliver of pure diamond from its holder in front of a laser emitter.  
  
~The Frontline, Somewhere close to Howler's Peak~  
  
Anthony, Grub and Trouble had spent the last half hour firing their Neutrino turrets into a horde of angry Goblins. Several defence Elves were sporting flame retardant shields, deflecting the attacks of the vexed goblins. They hadn't given up. After losing a hundred comrades, the remaining Goblins hadn't faltered in their attack plan. Their main objective was to stall the LEP from getting to their Leader Agamemnon until he had recovered his precious 'stone' for which he was hunting. The LEP were firing shot after shot, hitting Goblin after Goblin but their numbers showed no sign of diminishing. Warlocks stood in the back healing fallen troops and the LEP could not take the Warlocks out for they were behind protective shielding. Anthony had a plan. Anthony and his best friend, Grub, were to sneak round behind the Goblins and incapacitate their warlock defendants. Knowing Goblins, they would never notice a couple of missing LEP members, let alone see them sneaking round behind them. Grub had second thoughts though Claws dragged him in a wide circle, hiding behind cars and signs and skipping past buildings. The empty cannons had been taken up by defender elves, eager to cool their hands and get away from the fireball-deflecting duties. Trouble Kelp had protested against the plan of Claws yet his better judgement told him that the plan was sound and that if it worked, they would be one step closer to finding out who their enemy was.  
Anthony and Grub were behind the Warlocks now; a few hundred metres and they could open fire from behind and take out the three warlocks who were guarding the Goblins. Grub slowly crawled next to Claws and tapped him on the shoulder, 'What setting should the Neutrino's be on?' he whispered, indicating his concern for the injury to the enemy, 'Too high and it might kill them, Warlocks are feeble Elves physically. we cant kill them.' 'Set yours lower if you want but mine's set to extra-crispy.' Claws said with a grin, Grub gulped and set his Neutrino down a few notches.  
  
Anthony stood up slowly, taking cover behind a large truck, Grub accompanied him. 'On three, one. two. thr-' Anthony jumped out from behind the truck, along with Grub Kelp.  
  
Facing them was the entire Goblin army, backed up by now five warlocks. Anthony looked at Grub and gulped, 'Uhh, well. shall we go out with a bang or tactfully retreat?' he asked.  
  
Grub could only nod as fireballs flew overhead. 


	4. Incursion

Chapter Four: Incursion  
  
~The Frontline, Somewhere close to Howler's Peak~  
  
Anthony and Grub didn't run, they stood their ground foolishly. The Goblins, smart enough to nice the back attack were too stupid to remember that they were turning their backs on an army of LEP officers. Anthony saw Trouble give him the thumbs up, Anthony turned and ran, grabbing Grub as he left. The horde of Goblins followed, leaving the shouting Warlocks behind. The LEP troops closed in on the warlocks who turned to fire lightning bolts and frozen icicles at the charging LEP. The defender troops did their job bravely, stopping the spells from hitting the LEP vehicles and gunners, the warlocks were stunned by the onslaught and turned to flee. 'Excellent shooting corporal!' Trouble cried as one of the Neutrino Turret's struck down two of the Warlocks at once, 'I'll make sure you get a commendation for that!' The goblins still chased Grub and Claws who made they way to Howler's Peak. Yelling, screaming and hurling fireballs, the Goblins chased the pair inside the main building of Howler's Peak Penitentiary prison.  
Few goblins followed, most had realised and stayed outside. The ranks thinned and Claws fired shots from his gun to take them down. Grub couldn't stop running, fear had gripped him tightly. He only stopped running when he ran into a locked door. Claws found him and pulled him to his feet. 'Its okay, buddy, we're clear.' he said, looking round, 'They're waiting outside for us, your brother will be here soon to help us.' 'Oh.. cool' Grub said, walking back to the entrance, Claws following with gun drawn. The huge collections of Goblins were waiting, staring into the dark of the Howler's Peak entrance. When Claws emerged they started growling and few threw fireballs. The LEP backup was nowhere to be seen. The goblins were thinking for once, they knew these two LEP members were trying to coerce them back inside the prison. Claws fired a few shots at the fireball wielding Goblins, trying to clam them down. 'Listen!' He shouted to the Goblins, 'Why are you doing this?!' 'Cuz we want that Short lady!' one snarled, the other Goblins agreed. 'We's gunner kill 'er!' another said, arousing more agreeing grunts. 'To what end?' Grub asked, the goblins lay silent 'Why?' Anthony shouted 'Cuz she put us in pri. pri.. Jail!' the first Goblin replied 'Didn't you deserve it?' Claws asked, 'she was just an LEP officer doing her job!' 'Yer, but she put us all in dere!' the Goblin gestured to the large cumbersome building behind them. Anthony sighed, he was getting nowhere with these imbeciles. The sirens and gunshots distracted him, all the goblins wheeled round to see the commotion and only a few got to see all of it. All of the guns were firing, cutting down most of the Goblins, the threat was finally coming under control..  
  
~The Tunnels Under Haven City~  
  
Butler couldn't bear to see Artemis like this, his emotions were running wild. This once cool, calm, collected mastermind was now a teeming wreck of emotions, feelings and wild thoughts. Artemis felt the same way. Why am I doing this to myself? He thought, why am I jeopardising my safety with reckless actions? He pressed on, Butler sighing and walking quietly behind Artemis. His head jerking with every noise and every anomalous blip on his scanner. Artemis looked around, they were coming close on some living creature, and Artemis' hopes were raised significantly. Hopefully Artemis could save Holly from any affliction that may be holding her and then he would have her trust back. The one thing Artemis wanted in the world right now was the chance to explain to Holly what had happened in the previous days. 'Here it comes' said Butler, he knew Artemis saw the mass of heat on his sensors. 'Yes.' Artemis said, drawing his gun and taking a deep breath, 'There! In the shadow.' he breathed, something loomed in the darkness. Angry male trolls weren't to be toyed with, Butler knew this. His first encounter with members of the People led to a battle with a fierce Troll who, eventually, had killed Butler. (If you happen to have the IQ of a Goblin, I'd just like to point out that he was healed by Holly's stray magic) Thanks to the past fours years, Butler now owed his life to Holly about three times over.  
When the Troll came lumbering out of the darkness, Artemis jumped backwards to Butler's side. Butler drew his gun, cranked the dial up to Extra Crispy and aimed, squeezing off three shots into the Troll's head. It staggered for a moment then looked at Butler stupidly. Sure, the heat was over two thousand degrees coming from the end of a Neutrino set on full but what did it matter when your skin is four inches thick?  
Artemis fired too, though his manicured nails and slender fingers stumbled on the controls, not managing so set the output higher. The Troll stood stationary for a moment until it realised they were trying to hurt him. He growled and ran at Butler who was firing into the Troll's chest. Artemis on the other hand, had a plan. He took the piton cord form his belt, clipped it into his gun and took aim. The piton zoomed from the gun, bounced off the thick granite overhead, wrapped round the Troll's neck and buried itself deep in its flesh. The Troll roared, having a diamond tipped hook buried in one's neck would enrage anyone.  
Butler clapped, applauding Artemis' aim and knowledge of geometry. The Troll tried to pull the piton out but it was hooked onto the thick skin of the Troll. Every time the Troll pulled, it roared in pain, every time it roared in pain, butler roared with laughter. Though cruel, it was funny that it would take the Troll hours to figure out that pulling on the cord only made it worse and caused him pain. Butler walked up to the Troll who was busy with both hands on the cord string. Butler placed his gun to the creature's forehead and pulled the trigger. The staggering troll leant against the side of the tunnel before sliding down it into unconsciousness.  
  
Artemis turned to Butler, nodded and continued walking up the tunnel. They were only a few hundred yards from the next heat mass. This one must be Holly. Butler was proud of the way Artemis had handled the troll, no sign of fear or second thoughts, he had acted like the warrior he himself was.  
As they reached Holly, they saw he laying quite still. Artemis knelt next to her and checked for a pulse, though it wasn't necessary. Her breathing was shallow and her eyes rolled back in her head. They had to get her out of there and back to the LEP Plaza. Butler sighed. 'Artemis, we could revive her and-' Butler stopped, Artemis had removed Holly's helmet and was staring blankly at her. Artemis then removed his helmet and was looking right at Holly, his eyes unblinking and his lip quivering. He wanted to just hold Holly, tell her she was going to be okay. He placed a hand on her shoulder and spoke softly. 'Hey, Holly.. wake up. please.? Holly.?' he squeezed her shoulder gently and Holly's eyes went back into focus. She looked up and saw Artemis' face, blackened by the dust that had hit him when he removed his helmet. Holly closed her eyes again and she coughed, 'what happened to the manicure mud-boy?' she stifled a laugh, it sounded like a strangled cough. 'I lost it when I beat up a troll.' Artemis smirked 'You? Never.you couldn't do it without. without.' she coughed again  
  
'Without a piton, good eyes and better aim' Butler said, picking up Holly and carrying her like a baby. 


	5. Not For The Faint Hearted

Chapter Five: Not For The Faint Hearted  
  
~Tunnels Beneath Haven City~  
  
Holly wasn't complaining. Riding in the big manservant's arms was pretty comfortable when you were this small and he was so big. She only felt uncomfortable when, with a darting glance, she saw Artemis staring silently up at her in Butler's arms. At this point, Holy had already healed herself but Butler had insisted she take it easy. Holly told them what had happened and Butler was genuinely concerned for her. She looked down at Artemis again; he was still staring, still smiling. Holly spoke to him. 'Hey, mud-boy, what's with the staring contest with my arm?' she joked; Artemis shook his head quickly and blinked. 'I Uhh. well. umm.' Artemis couldn't reply, Holly knew this before he had even spoken. 'Artemis, you're getting a little weird. ever since.' Holly blinked, 'Oh yeah, I'm mad at you!' she said, silencing straight away. Now was Artemis' chance, he knew what he had to say and he needed to say it quickly. 'I wanted to get another Elf, not to harm him but to keep in contact with the People,' he said, Holly making to interrupt him, 'BUT, I had no idea it was going to be your brother and when I found out-' He stopped, taking a deep breath, 'I made every effort to ensure his safe journey home and comfort. I even gave him back all of his technology.' Holly was speechless, she didn't understand much of this, 'But. I gave you. I gave you my helmet, so you could keep in contact with me. I wanted to.. to.' she stopped. Butler was ignoring the conversation; he was scanning the immediate area for any possible enemies. 'I knew you left it, I was very grateful but. I wanted you to be in front of me, I wanted to see you right in front of me again. a view screen wasn't going to cut it.' Artemis looked down at the ground; Holly was beginning to get angry. Artemis didn't have any reason for her to be there for him any more. 'Why, Artemis? Why would you want me to be there? Why would you want me to be 'right in front of you'? Tell me why.' Holly growled. It was true that Holly had begun to enjoy Artemis' company, she loved having him around for his ideas and his wit but he didn't have to go to such desperate measures just to get close to her again, did he? 'I just wanted to tell you how much you mean to me. how much our time together has influenced the way I am and how I never want to be without you again.' Artemis said weakly, he was finding it hard to speak, Holly just blinked. 'What are you trying to say, mud-boy?' Holly said the first thing that came into her head. 'I'm not sure. I don't know.' he replied. He really didn't know and he couldn't think straight. Holly jumped down from Butler's arms and stood facing Artemis who had stopped, he was shaking ever so slightly and he looked into Holly's bright hazel eyes and smiled weakly. 'You're a silly boy Artemis. I would have come if you'd have just asked me to.' Holly said and placed a hand on Artemis' dirty cheek. 'All you had to do was ask and I would have been there before you could count to ten.' she leaned in close to Artemis who, by now, was growing almost scared of her.  
  
Holly kissed him on the cheek.  
  
~LEP Plaza, Haven City~  
  
Foaly had clicked the last piece into place and immediately the egg started to whirr. The small egg-shaped mechanical invention was roughly the size of a football; Foaly stood looking at it fondly. 'This is what will save me, Julius' Foaly said, Root looked at it, eyes narrowed. 'What is it supposed to do?' Root asked, picking up the egg. 'It will make a split in the time stop so that I can exit it safely and stay outside the normal loop of time until the time stop recedes.' Root didn't fully understand Foaly's words. A bit too technical for him 'And why do you need to be saved from the Time Stop again?' 'Because, my fungus brained friend,' Foaly snapped, he had told Root this several times now, 'Centaurs don't go into time stop zones because when the time stop ends they loose their minds!!' Foaly shouted, turning away and snatching his egg back from Root. Foaly slowly trotted back to his office, he looked down at the egg, pressed a small switch on its side and watched as it powered itself up. Green energy began to flow from the holes in its sides and slowly, a patch of the blue time-stop air turned slowly back to its normal colour. Foaly moved the egg until the patch of normal time was surrounding his desk and computer; no use being bored while he waited out the Time Stop.  
  
~Disused Koboi Laboratories, Haven City~  
  
Agamemnon and his droned Goblins were happier than usual at the moment. During his trip into the tunnels, Agamemnon had found his target. He didn't care if the Goblins tarred and feathered Holly Short now, the locket that had once rested around Holly's neck, given to her by her mother, was now clasped in Agamemnon's hand. The stone, which rested in the metal casing of the locket, was over six hundred years old. Dating back to the early 15th century, the stone was a bright emerald green stone. It wasn't precious as such, it was only a piece of rock which came from the exact centre of the planet but this stone was special to people who knew how to use it. The power to control any mud-man who could see the stone was the precious part. Agamemnon knew the power was concealed in the stone, his wife Julia had created it from the many spells her family had helped to write over the centuries. But how did it end up in Holly's family? There was a short and simple answer to this question but that wouldn't be much fun to tell, would it?  
  
Not knowing the true power concealed in the stone, Holly's grandfather had stolen it from Agamemnon after he had supposedly committed suicide five hundred and fifty years previously. The unwitting Elf, 'Rose Thorn' Short was a daring thief in these years, stealing tons of gold and precious stones from Haven strongholds and banks with the famous Dwarf, Orion Diggums. This necklace was Rose Thorn's prize catch and when the LEP caught him in 1712, he had hidden this as an heirloom in his family. Passed down from Father to First-born for only one generation now, Holly was the second to inherit this necklace from her mother. She kept it close just because it was her mother's, no one in the family ever knew how powerful the little stone was. The only problem was Holly didn't know it was lost.  
  
~Tunnel Entrance, Haven City~  
  
Trudging muddy, cold and damp from the cave entrance was Artemis, Holly and closely behind, Butler. Butler was completely confused. Artemis was walking closely next to Holly, who felt compelled to cling on to Artemis' arm. The journey through the caves and tunnels had been very enlightening. Holly and Artemis shared their thoughts and feelings which ad been bottled up since their adventure in Russia. Artemis felt completely at ease with himself now that Holly understood his reason for kidnapping another Elf, even if it was her brother. Holly felt complimented by the lengths Artemis would go to be with her, contact with her was obviously Artemis' number on priority after recovery from the memory wipe. Neither Holly or Artemis knew what was happening but they both felt like love struck teenagers. Holly had been denying how she felt for a long time because of the fact that Artemis was just a mud-boy from the surface but now it didn't seem to matter.  
  
Butler shook his head, 'Kids' he mumbled and walked quicker.  
  
Dedicated to Kelaal and Becca. 


	6. Open Book

Chapter Six: Open Book  
  
~LEP Plaza, Haven City~  
  
Holly, Artemis and Butler opened the doors to the LEP Plaza; they were confronted by a mass of Goblin parents demanding for the release of their unruly offspring. Holly tried to push past them but they blocked her path. Butler grunted and pushed through the crowd, leaving a wake of Goblins lying on the floor groaning. Holly giggled and followed him, Artemis just shrugged. Holly buzzed them through the 'restricted' door and Artemis went through quickly as butler held the doors open for him. Holly entered Root's office, Root looked up at her with wide surprised eyes. 'Where have you been Captain?' he asked, standing up as she entered. 'In the tunnels, hiding from the mob,' he laughed, 'I guess I would have been done for if Artemis and butler hadn't come so bravely to my rescue!' she joked, she was in a strangely good mood for an elf, who weren't noted for their good moods. 'Yes, we found her quite deep in the tunnels below the city.. it was getting rather hot down there but.' Artemis stopped, looking at the map on his screen, 'we found Holly, unconscious, directly below the old Koboi Laboratories building.' Root nodded, 'I want you to go back down there, maybe there's a subterranean entrance or something..' he said, turning away and taking three bulk guns from a tray behind him. 'Here, these are new prototypes, they work fine on old Neutrino charges, they're portable DNA cannons,' Root smiled, 'Foaly chucked 'em out a while ago.' Butler grinned widely. Fairy technology and the word 'cannon' mixed together evilly well. They took their new weapons, Holly hesitated. 'but I like my Neutrino.' she said grudgingly, 'but I guess I'll take one, Trolls are resistant to the new Neutrino model' she aimed this at Root, compelling him to make changed to the gun. Artemis wasn't struggling to carry the gun but it was uncomfortably heavy. 'I think I'll stick with the Neutrino too. its. umm. lighter' he said, putting the new weapon on Root's desk. 'I'm against giving you mud-people new fairy technology but its crucial that you can defend yourselves from these bloody Goblins. I don't want Mud- Man deaths on my hands.' Butler and Artemis curtly nodded and left the room, Holly wanted to talk to Root alone. 'After this, I'm pulling in all my sick leave,' she said, she knew she didn't have to ask; she'd never even taken a day off since she stated in the LEP, she had at least four weeks of sick time. 'I want to take a break, a long one, on the surface.' she said. 'Holly. now you know time on the surface is restricted to one week.' Root replied, calmly, 'but you also know I'll pull some strings for you.' He smiled, 'any where in particular you plan on going?' 'Dublin' holly said and walked out to follow Butler and Artemis. The car Artemis and butler had originally taken to the tunnels was now in front of the LEP Plaza, muddy, beaten and burnt. Holly passed this vehicle and made for an empty LEP wagon that had enough room for Butler to sit straight in. Artemis followed Holly quickly, he sided with her and spoke. 'So, what did Julius have to say?' he asked quietly. 'I have a lot of free time coming up, I can spend it all on the surface.' She replied, smiling as she opened the vehicle door. 'Where do you plan on going? My father owns real estate all over the world, I'm sure I can give you one for a while.' He said, sitting next to Holy in the front seat, butler was once again silent and sitting in the back seat massaging his neck. 'I plan on going to Dublin and staying in Fowl Manor for a while.' She grinned, looking at Artemis who was blinking. 'This is your chance, Arty, your one and only chance. show me you've changed and I'm yours.' Artemis was completely speechless, this had to be magic.  
  
~Disused Koboi Laboratories, Haven City~  
  
Agamemnon's troops ran around like crazy preparing his shuttle for launch. The new chute was badly made and erratic but Agamemnon's magic should be enough to sustain the ascent up to the surface, or so they thought. 'Get this ready NOW!' Agamemnon's dark voice sounded through the building, the goblins going as fast as they could yet it would still be a while before it was ready for launch. An old chute shuttle had been salvaged from incineration and Goblin technicians (the goblins who's IQ was over thirty) were busy tuning it up and fixing huge cracks and bumps. 'I need to get to the surface as soon as possible, the Time stop will not last much longer and I need to escape just as it collapses because,' he took a deep rattling breath, 'because as soon as one troop of Warlocks grow weak, another will take its place and create a new time stop, trapping the LEP and the People below ground!' he forced a laugh, a loud cackling, evil drawl which made some Goblins cringe. Agamemnon's plan was sound, there weren't many cracks in the idea. The LEP had no idea who was behind the attacks and they weren't one hundred percent sure where their foe was but Agamemnon didn't plan on the keen intellect of Artemis Fowl and his dangerous bodyguard, Butler. Holly Short was one concern, from a long line of daring elves that had been direct foes of the Dyxs Elves for a long time. She was a strong one but Agamemnon wasn't worried as much. He should be worried, the approaching trio had taken down Opal Koboi and Cudgeon and the multimillionaire Jon Spiro AND the elusive bodyguard Arno Blunt. There didn't seem to be much in the stopping of Holly, Artemis and Butler.  
  
~Howler's Peak Prison, Haven City~  
  
Over four hundred Goblins had been apprehended and locked up. Some were new culprits but most were the old felons out for revenge. Anthony had subdued a lot of Goblins this night, there was a LEPrecon pool as to who could catch the most Goblins and Trouble was beating Claws by the hair on a dwarf's chin. 'Alright, the night's still young TROUBLE,' he grinned, 'I'll beat you yet.' 'Yeah, right. you're too you, I'm surprised you even got one!' Trouble Kelp grinned back, 'Little kid Claws' Grub stepped in to defend his friend, 'He may be a kid but he's beating you, bro! The numbers just came in, Claws 83, Trouble 79!' Grub said, the LEP officers in the room fell around laughing, Trouble stood shocked. 'Yeah, well. we got time to go still, I'll win yet!' he stormed from the room. Claws grinned and eyed up the pile of gold that had grown over the night in the LEP wagon  
  
So, Artemis and Holly were developing their newfound relationship and Holly planned on spending some extra time with Artemis in the Manor. Butler had found new things to be silent about since Holly and Artemis started having conversations he hand no part in.  
  
Meanwhile, back at Fowl Manor, Juliet was having a heart attack over the whereabouts of her brother just as a loud knock sounded on the large oak door. 


End file.
